RCB V KXIP, IPL 2017: Nothing to lose for Kohli & Co

BENGALURU: When you hit rock bottom, the only way ahead is up. Royal Challengers Bangalore, looking to put a disastrous Indian Premier League campaign behind them, will hope to take their first steps towards redemption against Kings XI Punjab at the M Chinnaswamy stadium on Friday.
Coming into the contest after a defeat to Mumbai Indians their eighth in 11 matches four days ago, Virat Kohli and his men have had enough time to work out their approach to salvage pride in their last three matches.With big players not living up to their billing, skipper Kohli might be tempted to throw a few youngsters into the mix.
Staying motivated will be a challenge for the hosts, as results have not gone their way even in their backyard with three losses in five games, unlike previous seasons. "It has not been easy," admitted Stuart Binny. "It is something new for the team to be struggling. We didn't expect it to happen to us. We didn't get the momentum going in the first half and that's hurt us. We have regrouped and have three games... we want to make the most of it," he said.
Kings XI, on the other hand, need no extra incentive. With eight points from nine matches, they know a win will take them a long way as they look to force their way into the top-four and contest the play-offs. Glenn Maxwell's team showed its intentions with a big win against Delhi Daredevils.
"It came at the right time," Kings XI batsman Martin Guptill said, before reflecting on the season. "We started off well and were unfortunate to lose four games on the bounce. We lost the key moments in a few games which cost us in the end. We've played of couple of good games in the last three. We are looking forward to putting out another good performance," he said.
With a near full squad to choose from Eoin Morgan is away on England duty Kings XI will rely on the likes of Hashim Amla (315 runs from 8 matches) and Maxwell (193 runs from 9 matches) to deliver the goods while Sandeep Sharma (11 wickets from 8 matches) and Axar Patel (10 from 9) could trouble the home batsmen.